


A gift from the heart

by LovelyLittleGrim



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Christmas, Dorks, Fluff, M/M, Secret Santa, friends to boyfriends, home made gifts, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-26
Updated: 2018-12-26
Packaged: 2019-09-27 20:01:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,781
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17168450
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LovelyLittleGrim/pseuds/LovelyLittleGrim
Summary: Liam is embarrassed about his secret Santa gift to Theo. He hopes the chimera likes it, even if it does look like a hot mess.





	A gift from the heart

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Freaki](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Freaki/gifts).



The Christmas party is in full swing by the time Liam reaches Mason’s house. Holiday music pumping out through the speakers, the scent of cookies and pie sweetening the air. Liam sucks a deep breath in through his nose and exhales loudly through his mouth. His palms are sweaty despite the chill in the air, his heart beating a little too fast. He’s been to countless Christmas parties at the Hewitt’s house, but for the first time in his life, he’s a little too nervous to go inside.

Liam clutches at the badly wrapped present in his hand as he hides out on the front porch. He wonders if he should just toss it into the bushes and run, claim he’s gotten some weird case of werewolf flu and can’t come to the party. He sighs and kicks on the stone steps. Mason wouldn’t believe him and everyone else would be able to hear the lie in Liam’s heartbeat and then someone would be left without a gift because Liam was a coward and tossed it in the bushes.

“Damn it,” he whispers.

_Why did he have to pick Theo out of the damn hat?_

He would have taken anyone else.  _Anyone._

He glances down at the gift. It’s handmade, just like Mason had insisted on all the gifts being. He can't help but think that Theo will hate it. 

_Its a gift from the heart,_  his mother had told him reassuringly before he'd left the house.  _No one hates those types of gifts Liam._

He shakes his head. _Nope, he can't do this. Werewolf flu it is._

“Leaving so soon?” A voice asks from behind him and Liam lets out a terrified squawk, his shoe catching on a little dip in the porch and almost making him fall. He just barely catches himself in time before face planting. 

"That was smooth." Theo is leaning against the railing on the porch and smirking, his hair gently tousled by the wind and the tip of his nose pink from the chill.

Liam narrows his eyes at him and fights the urge to hide the present behind his back even though its all wrapped up. “How long have you been standing there?”

“Long enough to see you have a mini-meltdown,” Theo laughs as he makes his way up the steps to where Liam is. He nods at the present in Liam’s hand, hands shoved into his jacket pockets. “What’s wrong, worried they won't like their gift?”

“No,” Liam says too quickly and Theo grins, catching him in the lie. 

“Then why don’t you come inside,” Theo asks, his hands slipping out of his jacket pockets. He arches a single brow challengingly and then reaches for the door. He pulls it open and a wave of warmth hits Liam in the face and realizes suddenly just how cold it is standing outside in the dark. “Unless you would rather stand out here all night like a creep?”

“Shut up,” Liam mutters embarrassedly. “I’m coming in."

"Then, after you," Theo says with a little wave of his hand.

Liam rolls his eyes but steps into the house. It doesn’t matter how many times Liam has been to Mason’s home, he’s always stunned by just how large it is inside, how clean and perfectly decorated. It’s so different from his parents' house, with their odd knickknacks and brightly painted walls. It's so put together. 

It seems to take forever and not enough time at all before they reach the dining room where the party is in full swing, their pack and their friends all laughing and drinking. Liam can’t help but smile. They’ve all come so far in the last two years, it always fills him with happiness when he has the chance to see everyone all together for the holidays like this. He's glad he hadn't turned tail and run away. Even if in the long run it means total embarrassment for him. 

“Alright,” Mason claps when he sees Liam and Theo. “Looks like we’re finally all here.”

There’s a smattering of cheers and laughs. Mason grins, “Guess it’s time to exchange gifts! Alright, secret Santas, reveal yourselves." 

“Already?” Liam squeaks out, panicked. He thought he had a little more time. Or at least the chance to have a drink or two before he had to hand over the horrible homemade gift.

“Problem?” Theo asks, looking entirely too amused beside him. 

“No,” Liam tells him with a shake of his head. “It just… I thought we would eat or drink or something first.”

“Well,” Mason said from behind him. “We could have done that had you not been so late.”

Liam turns to see Mason’s amused look, his eyes dropping down to the gift in Liam’s hand. “Aren’t you going to give your present away, Liam?”

_Oh, that dick._  He knows Liam has Theo, doesn’t he? He probably rigged the drawing just, so Liam would get him. Liam wouldn’t put it past Mason, especially since Mason knows all about Liam’s ridiculous and unrequited feelings for the chimera.

“I’ll do it in a moment,” Liam grits out and shoos him away. “Don’t you have hosting to do, Mason. Go, host.”

Mason snorts out a laugh and makes his way over to where Scott, Kira, and Malia are standing in a semi-circle. Liam wants to throw the present at Mason’s head, it wouldn’t hurt too much, but he’s already stressed about giving Theo his gift and he doesn’t need guilt to add to the pressure of the night... even if is bestfriend is Lucifer incarnate. 

“Liam,” Theo says, and Liam doesn’t want to turn back to him, but he does anyway.

Theo’s holding out his hand and Liam almost has a panic attack, because how the fuck did Theo know that Liam is his secret Santa, but then he sees the small red parcel in Theo’s hand and breathes.

“Well,” Theo says slowly, a single brow arching up. “Are you going to take the gift?”

Liam blinks in surprise as he slowly takes the package out of Theo’s hand. “You’re my secret Santa?”

“Yeah,” Theo glances over at Mason before turning his eyes back to Liam. The tips of his ears are pink and the scent of embarrassment clings to him the same way it clings to Liam. He huffs, “You gonna open it or just stare at the wrapping paper all night?”

Liam rolls his eyes, sets down the gift he made for Theo and tears open the small gift Theo had given him.

He laughs delightedly when he sees what’s hidden away inside of the paper. “It’s a little wolf,” he says and holds up the keychain so he can see the carefully carved wolf attached to the end of a short silver chain. The wood is pale, almost white in color, much like the color that Liam’s wolf form is when he fully shifts. He laughs again when he realizes what he said. The nickname Theo had given him easily sliding off his lips. His voice is low and warm as he stares at the little wolf keychain. “A little wolf…It’s me.”

He looks up at Theo and sees him staring back. “This is amazing, Theo,” he says honestly, his heart beating a mile a minute. Theo had obviously worked really hard on the carving. The detail in the fur and the paws obvious, the eyes are even painted a soft gold, like the glowing eyes of a werewolf.

Liam doesn’t want to read into the gift but he can’t help but hope that maybe Theo’s feelings are the same as his, that maybe Mason had rigged the drawing so that Theo would get Liam.

“I love it,” Liam whispers, even though he wants to say  _I love you_. He tugs his keys from his pocket and carefully attaches the little wolf to them, he stares at it amongst his house and car keys and smiles. “Thank you, Theo.”

Theo clears his throat and shrugs. “What are secret Santa’s for.”

_Shit. Secret Santa’s._

Liam wants to groan when he remembers that he has to give Theo his gift now. The little wolf makes him even more embarrassed now for Theo to see what he made. He carefully shoves his keys into his pocket and picks up the gift he made from where he had set it down.

He doesn’t look at Theo, just shoves the box into Theo’s hand. “Um, don’t open it in here, okay?”

“Why?” Theo asks dubiously and Liam glances up at him in time to see him arch a curious brow. “Is it a bomb?”

“What?” Liam chokes out a laugh and then shakes his head hurriedly. “No, no, it’s…just…” He glances at everyone else, but they’re all wrapped up in unwrapping their own gifts and laughing. He spares one last glare at Mason before turning away.

“Come on,” he tells Theo, gently grabbing him by the hand and leading him out of the dining room and into the hallway. He pauses for a moment before deciding that the hallway is too open and the last thing he wants is Jackson or Stiles to see the gift he made for Theo. He nods down the hallway to where the kitchen is.

“Starting to really think this might be a bomb, now,” Theo says, but Liam can tell that he’s joking. He can hear the subtle amusement in Theo’s tone along with the intrigue. “where are we going?”

“Kitchen,” Liam murmurs.

“Did you really want food that badly?” Theo asks.

“No, I just… didn’t want anyone to see what I made,” Liam says surprising himself with his honesty.

“Oh?” Theo questions as they draw farther and farther from the party. “Why not?”

Liam glances back at Theo and then quickly turns back to the watching where he’s going. Theo’s eyes are so very green and deep. “Because it’s not for everyone else, it’s for you.”

Theo’s fingers twitch in his hand, moving until their fingers lock together more comfortably. “Oh.”

Liam wants to see the expression on Theo’s face but he’s too nervous to look back again, so instead, he keeps looking forward until he reaches the kitchen doors and pushes them open. The kitchen is thankfully very empty when they step inside.

There are plates of cookies set out on the counter and as delicious as they smell and look, Liam doesn’t try to grab one. 

He doesn’t look up at Theo as he gestures at the gift. “Okay,” he breathes out nervously. “You can open it now.”

“Thanks,” Theo says but makes no move to tear into the paper. There's a long silent pause and then Theo says softly, "I need my hand back first, Liam." 

Liam makes a noise low in his throat, he’d forgotten he was still holding Theo’s hand. It had been comfortable. He pulls away and laughs, it sounds too high and rattled even to him. “Right, sorry, open your gift.”

_Fuck,_  Liam thinks as Theo starts to tear open the wrapping paper.

He should have made something else. He shouldn’t have made something so… personal to Theo. Something that would show just how much Liam cared for the chimera. He should have just painted a pinecone to look like Santa clause like Scott had done damn it. It wouldn’t have been the greatest gift, but it would have been cute, and Liam wouldn’t be having a mental breakdown as he waits to see Theo’s reaction.

The sound of ripping paper stops after what seems like an eternity and Liam lifts his gaze from the intricately tiled floor to see Theo’s wide eyes. The chimera’s holding the stuffed dragon delicately, as though he’s worried the patchwork will just suddenly fall apart in his hands if he squeezes it too hard. Liam likes to think he’s gotten better at reading Theo, reading his scents and his expression, but he can’t place the look on Theo’s face now. And, that makes him worried.

He rushes to explain before Theo can speak. “Sorry, I know it’s hideous, It just I, uh, I, uh, I remember you said you used to have a stuffed dragon named Robbs when you were a kid and that you lost it when you went to summer camp, and I…”

Liam trails off weakly, his face burning as he stares down at the very poorly made stuffed dragon in Theo’s hands. The wings are disproportionate, and the snout is way too short, and Liam had somehow run out of blue fabric so there are random patches of green in places.

The whole thing is an absolute disaster, but he had worked really hard on it and he had stuck himself in the thumb with his needle so many times he’s surprised there aren’t rust colored spot anywhere on the fabric.

His mom had laughed herself into tears when she had seen it, but she had also placed a warm kiss on his forehead and said that she knew Theo would love it even if it was a little funny looking. His mom is usually right about things so…Liam hopes that stays true.

“You remembered that story?” Theo sounds surprised, his eyes flicking from Liam to the dragon. “we were drunk when I told you that.”

“Yeah,” Liam says and scratches nervously at the back of his neck. “I mean, I remember parts of it. Like that the dragon was blue and his name was Robbs and that you… that you miss him sometimes when you have trouble sleeping—”

Liam snaps his mouth closed. He hadn’t meant to say that last part out loud. It was too telling. Too obvious even for him.

There’s something unreadable in Theo’s dark green eyes, his scent taking on something complicated and almost overwhelming. “So, you made me a dragon?”

Liam swallows thickly. “Yeah,” his voice just barely above a whisper, but still it sounds too loud in the silent kitchen.

He stares at the slight bruises beneath Theo’s eyes, where the long nights of no sleep have taken their toll. He knows Theo has nightmares about his sister, about hell and the dread doctors. “I don’t like seeing you look so exhausted all the time,” he admits after a moment. “I was hoping the dragon would help.”

Theo’s lips part, close and then part again like he’s at a loss for words. Liam almost feels smug about that, he’s never been able to render the chimera speechless before. Liam shakes his head and smiles, soft and fond. He knows it’s hard for Theo to ask for help, knows it’s hard for him to say thank you.

“Come on,” Liam says, reaching out for Theo’s hand and tangling their fingers together again. He likes how warm Theo’s hand is, how right it feels in his own. He wishes he could keep a hold of it but knows sooner or later he’ll have to let it go again. “We should get back to the pack before Mason sends out a search party for us.”

Liam heads for the door, but Theo stops him, his hand tugging Liam back.

“What—” Liam starts to ask but loses the rest of his question on Theo’s lips as they press gently into his own.

Then Theo is pulling back, his ears a bright pink. “Thank you,” he tells Liam quickly.

 “Yeah,” Liam rasps out. “you’re welcome.”

Theo nods and then tugs Liam towards the door. This time he’s the one that guides them down the long hallways back towards the dining room where the sound of laughter and music spills out.

Mason catches Liam’s eyes as soon as they’re both in the room again and he grins like a madman. Theo hasn’t let go of his hand, instead, their fingers are woven tightly together. Liam’s heart trips at the realization.

Theo glances over at him, a question in his eyes.

_Is this okay?_

Liam grins up at him and knocks his shoulder gently into Theo’s.

_Yes._

“Merry Christmas,” Mason calls out to them, dragging everyone else’s attention towards them.

Scott waves and then gives Liam what he probably thinks is a subtle thumbs up but isn’t. No one looks surprised by their interlocked hands, or the way their shoulders are pressed together, and Liam wonders if he should be embarrassed by what that means.

“That—” Stiles starts but before he can finish Lydia pinches him. Stiles makes a face at her.

“That’s a… cool dragon,” Stiles says finally, tone lilting up at the end like he’s questioning whether it’s actually a dragon clutched in Theo’s other hand.

“Yeah,” Theo grins cockily, his fingers tightening around Liam’s hand. “It is.”

**The end.**


End file.
